IR3004 International Political Economy

This module will begin with an outline of the three major traditions of international political economy: liberalism, Marxism and nationalism, providing an explanation of their main ideas, as well as a critique. After a brief examination of some more contemporary theories, the module will go on to examine the politics of international trade, including an overview of the GATT system, and some topical trade issues. The module will examine the importance of multinational corporations in the world trading system, and will then go on to look at relations between North and South. The module will finish with the importance of regional economic groupings, some thoughts on the future international economic regime.

IR3006 International Regimes and Organisations

This module covers: regime theory and international relations; the rise of the international organisation; international conference diplomacy and rise of multi-lateralism; the UN system and its growth after 1945; complex cases of multi-lateral diplomacy; politicization and financial issues in the UN system, the post-cold War reform of the UN.

IR3007 Democracy and Democratisation

This module examines some of the models of democracy and the questions raised by democratic political orders. It explores the spread of democratisation in recent decades using examples from Latin America, Southern and Eastern Europe. Finally, it addresses the possibilities of, and arguments about democratising the international political system.

IR3008 International Terrorism

This module examines the concept of terrorism; problems of definition; nature and characteristics and relationships to other forms of violence; typology; political objectives, strategies and motivations; underlying causes of rise and decline of terrorism; dilemmas of democratic and international response; aviation terrorism; terrorism and diplomacy; the problem of state sponsorship and support; problems of international co-operation, including the use of diplomacy, international law and organisation, and police and intelligence measures.

IR3011 Ethics and World Politics

This module will examine some of the most important ethical questions in contemporary world politics against the background of more general debates in ethics and political theory. Its objectives are: (1) to allow students to develop a knowledge of the complexities and problems of contemporary ethical and theoretical debate as they impact upon questions of world politics and (2) to develop a thorough account of the major ethical dilemmas of contemporary world politics. The module begins with a discussion of some of the major competing ethical approaches to world politics (cosmopolitan, realist, sceptical and critical) and then moves on to a focus on issues such as the use of force, justice, environmental concerns, and the character and possible evolution of the state as the central actor in world politics. It will close with a consideration of the importance of questions of character and virtue in world politics.

IR3013 Modern Ideologies

The module aims at analysing modern ideologies and at establishing their relevance for theories of international relations. It examines the ideological assumptions on human nature and on the relationship between individual and society which lie behind different theories of international relations. The module deals with three related problems: a) the analysis of the concept of 'ideology'; b) the assessment of the contributions to the understanding of politics offered by Liberalism, Conservatism, Marxism, Fascism, Feminism and Ecologism; c) the investigation of the connections between classical ideologies and theories of international relations.

IR3015 Religion, Politics and Democracy

This module explores the relationship between religion and politics, focusing in particular on issues of religion, democracy and democratization. To that end it will start by introducing social scientific theories relating to religion and society and, using particular cases, will raise the question of where religion belongs in increasingly secularized political orders. These cases will vary from year to year, but are likely to focus on issues relating to church and state in Europe, the impact of the Christian Right in the USA, the contribution of Catholicism to democratization in Latin America and eastern Europe, the relationship of political Islam to democracy, the rise of 'electoral Islam' in countries such as Turkey, the special challenges posed to established democracies by growing religious pluralism, and the impact of Hindu nationalism on the nature of Indian democracy.

IR3021 Case Studies in Conflict Analysis

This module provides students with an opportunity to work on case studies in conflict analysis, in which they develop the skills required to analyse the roots, dynamics, key actors and issues-areas in specific conflicts. They will be introduced to the theoretical frameworks contained within conflict analysis about definitions of conflict, perceptions, historical interpretations, political, social, cultural and economic dynamics, initiation and escalation, and then will be asked to choose and investigate a particular case study according to the different analytical frameworks associated with conflict analysis. Problems associated with researching conflict and violence will also be tackled. This will provide the basis for each student to engage in a detailed case study, chosen from a specific list of key cases.

IR3023 US Foreign Policy: The Dilemmas of Empire

The module will be descriptive, explanatory, and evaluative. The first week of class will be devoted to a brief survey of theories of foreign policy, focusing on a range of positivist and post-positivist debates. From that point onwards, theoretical debates will be subsumed into the various historical, constitutional and structural descriptions of how US foreign policy is formulated and executed. Throughout the module we will also explore various normative critiques of the conduct of US foreign policy.

IR3024 The Politics of Africa

This module provides an introduction to the study of African politics. Contemporary Africa is complex and varied: the continent consists of around fifty states with very different histories, colonial experiences, economies, values, and social structures. The module reviews the social and historical context of contemporary political life, looking at the changes the continent has undergone since independence. It will examine and seek to understand the colonial legacy, the nature of the post-colonial state, society and its institutions, the nation-building projects and policies of these states and the movement towards democratisation and the continuation of authoritarian rule through "low intensity democracy".

IR3025 International Security

This module provides a general overview of international security affairs using a variety of conceptual perspectives, ranging from orthodox realist and liberal approaches to more recent critical theories. It also covers traditional issues of security studies such as the offence-defence balance, alliance formation, and collective security, as well as the 'new security agenda' involving societal security, environment, public health, and related problems.

IR3026 Diplomacy and Conflict Intervention

This module will explore the changing nature of diplomacy as it relates to conflict intervention, including the differences between the old and the new diplomacy and the range of governmental and non-governmental actors in conflict intervention, from encouraging and facilitating dialogue to economic sanctions to monitoring human rights, to peacekeeping and peace-enforcement, to forums for addressing past injustice. These forms of intervention will be critically analysed against the background of globalisation.

IR3027 American New World Orders in the Twentieth Century

This module will examine the historical roots of the phenomenon widely known as the 'new world order' as developed, mainly, but not exclusively, by a series of United States Presidents since 1918. It will also critically examine the policy discussions that took place to re-define the nature of international order during the First and Second World Wars, and since 1991, up to and including the neo-conservative thinkers of the recent period. It will further look at the main concepts that emerged from such thinking, and notably self-determination, the international organization and the further emergence of global capitalism.

IR3028 The Politics of China

This module will examine the politics of post-1949 China, first examining post-Communist Revolution political history and the development of the Chinese Communist Party. The module will then describe the structure of the Chinese party-state, leadership issues from Mao Zedong to Hu Jintao, modern issues of governance, state-society relations, and political relations between central actors and the provinces. Current socio-political issues, including economic development and modernization, and the "Rise of China" phenomenon, as well as current social issues within the PRCE, will also be surveyed.

IR3029 The Logic of Irregular Warfare

The purpose of this module is to examine the dynamics of violence in three distinct forms of irregular armed conflict: civil wars, insurgencies and guerilla wars. Its starting point is that the twentieth century has witnessed a shift from traditional forms of warfare to these three distinct forms of irregular war and that this shift demands a reconsideration of the way that warfare is studied. Using theoretical approaches to the subject, as well as historical case studies, it will identify the dynamics of irregular warfare in the twentieth century, trace the diverse motivations and strategies implicit in different kinds of irregular warfare, and discuss the implications of this shift for those responsible for countering irregular warfare.

IR3030 Human Rights in Theory and Practice

This module introduces students to the complex debates concerning human rights, and in particular to the interrelationship between human rights in theory and in practice. While human rights is a powerful idea in our time, it is also the focus of numerous controversies. The module explores the philosophical foundations of universal human rights; the political, legal and historical development of modern human rights norms; issues and trends that have arisen since the advent of the United Nations human rights system; and the impact of human rights on the rules of international politics.

IR3031 Globalisation and the War on Terrorism

This inter-disciplinary module introduces students to various conceptual frameworks for thinking about the war on terror in an age of globalization, along with a range of empirical case studies designed to illustrate these theoretical debates. A selection of readings is provided, ranging from international relations to other contributions from sociology, criminology, philosophy, history and political science. Theoretical issues examined include globalization as a new security paradigm; the notion of a globalised War Risk society; the clash of civilsations vs. the continued relevance of realism; and re-defining what 'war' means in the war on terror. Case studies comprise NATO's transformation; war on Iraq; and emerging non-military attempts at global governance in controlling terrorism.

IR3032 Globalisation and its Disjunctures

Debates concerning globalisation have intensified since 9/11, the US-led intervention in Afghanistan and Iraq, the emergence of various Islamist groups that proclaim jihad, the proliferating security concerns around the world (particularly following the Madrid and London bombings), debates concerning the environment, and the rise of the new economic powers of China and India. Globalisation is a complex phenomenon that is defined in so many different ways that it is difficult to know what it means and to predict its potential utility. The literature on globalisation is diverse in terms of the specific approaches adopted and conclusions reached. There is no single theory of globalisation. Rather globalisation involves complex dialectical processes of homogenisation and differentiation, integration and fragmentation, and universalisation and particularlisation. The purpose of this module is to critically explore both the theory and practice of globalisation and its disjunctures in the contemporary world.

IR3033 Post-Conflict Transition in Sub-Saharan Africa

This module provides a detailed introduction to the theory and practice of conflict management in sub-Saharan Africa. Focusing principally on United Nations peace operations after the Cold War, the module will explain the evolution of the UN's post-conflict role in Africa and analyse issues of sovereignty, intervention, security, and development. The post-conflict transition of several states will be examined, including Namibia, Mozambique, Rwanda, Somalia, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Sudan, and the Greater Great Lakes region. The module will also articulate the impact of regional security dynamics on post-conflict transition and discuss the role of regional organizations in Africa. Finally, critical approaches to peacekeeping and peace-building will be evaluated.

IR3034 The Political Theory of War and Peace

This module will examine the relationship between war, peace and politics in key thinkers from the European, Islamic and Chinese traditions of political thought. The texts chosen will be both older and more recent texts and the principle focus of the module will be on the way they understand the relationship between statecraft, peace and war and the similarities and differences between them.

IR3035 Peace Processes and Violence

This module will examine issues of violence that confront peacemaking processes I contemporary civil wars. It begins by examining the concepts of peace and peace processes, before considering the role of violence, and violent actors, in facilitating or thwarting a negotiated agreement between combatants. Practical and ethical issues abound: is there a right time to talk to 'terrorists'; can we overcome a deeply embedded culture of violence; are all spoilers necessarily bad? The module will be comparative and draw on contemporary examples.

IR3037 Central Asian Security

Located in one of the world's most strategic zones, between Russia, China and a troubled Middle East, Central Asia relies on its substantial human and natural resources in the renegotiation of its geopolitical status and in its post-Soviet securitization. In popular culture the region has become associated with films and TV shows, and, historically, with tales of the Great Game. This module aims to assess critically the degree to which this region is a site of danger and geopolitical pivot. By applying theories of security and geopolitics to the region, it analyzes such diverse phenomena as the Tajik Civil war (1992-1997) that left 50,000 dead; the events of Andijan in 2005; the politics of identity in the Ferghana Valley; the new security agenda of drugs trafficking and resource wars and the interest of outside players in the region.

IR3038 Conflict Management, Settlement and Resolution

Understanding how and why conflict emerges, and how it may be addressed are crucial issues in the international system. Conflict between states and the emergence of conflict derived from political, social, structural, historical, and ethnic roots have driven the development of apparatus to address conflict, arranging from diplomatic exchanges, the use of military force, peacekeeping, negotiation, mediation and conflict resolution. This module is divided into two main areas, the first discusses various approaches used to analyse conflict, from the point of view of states, individuals and groups, regional and international organizations, investigating dominant issues of conflict, including state-interests, territory, sovereignty, development, resources, identity, culture, ethnicity, and representation. The second part of the module then examines the various approaches that have emerged for addressing conflict. Topical case studies will provide an empirical focus.

IR3039 International Relations of the European Union

This module examines the European Union (EU) from a variety of perspectives derived from major theories/concepts of international relations and comparative politics. It considers the EU as a key reference point in the foreign/security/defence policies of EU member states, as a major centre of gravity in Europe's regional neighbourhood, and as an important global actor. The module also considers the EU's relations with competing actors, particularly the U.S., NATO, Russia and China, as well as its role as a model for other experiments in regional integration.

IR3040 Terrorism, Radicalism and Extremism

This module introduces the student to a series of advanced theoretical, conceptual, methodological and policy-relevant issues in the study of the radicalization process and its relationship to terrorism. Through a research-led lecture series, informed by contemporary research on terrorism conducted by researchers at the University of St Andrews, students will be introduced to multi-disciplinary frameworks in understanding such issues as the utility of root cause explanations of terrorism, involvement in terrorism, counterterrorism, and conceptual and theoretical frameworks in understanding the process of radicalization to terrorism.

IR3041 International Political Theory

This module introduces students to international political theory, or the use of ethical, political and legal theory to evaluate various international practices. Unlike IR theory, IPT is primarily normative in orientation, drawing on both the history of ideas and current political and ethical theory to give students tools for evaluating international affairs rather than simply explaining them. It addresses topics such as war, economics, environmental issues, law, and religion.

IR3042 Representations of Violent Conflict: Research Seminar

The module interrogates the nature of violence and the representational dilemmas this creates for the researcher and for conflict analysis more generally. It explores competing and cross-disciplinary theoretical and methodological approaches to study violent conflict, and then applies these to specific case studies. Problems associated with researching conflict and violence will also be covered, including ethical considerations, challenges of field research, and problems of cross-cultural communication. Students will produce an original case study focused on a conflict site or issue of their choice. The module provides instruction on research and writing skills, and trains students to construct theoretical and methodological research frameworks that will augment their preparation for the IR Honours Dissertation.

IR3043 Approaches to Counter-Terrorism

This module will explore 'orthodox'/mainstream, critical, and peace studies approaches to counter-terrorism. Beginning with a case-study on the UK's responses to 'radical' Islamism and the prevalence of Islamophobia, the students will begin to evaluate the different approaches for effectiveness. The module will highlight that less considered counter-terrorism practices and procedures offer different perspectives and quite possible different results.

IR3044 Pathways of European State Formation

The State is one of the most foundational units of analysis in International Relations, but where does it come from? This module explores the historical, and often violent, processes associated with the formation of the modern state in Europe, and the implications for the organisation of the economy and political society, as well as its impact for the larger development of the global political economy. Students will engage in how the creation of the state entails the parallel and commitment creation of categories into which bodies are designated, assigned, and condemned. The module begins with the transition from the mediaeval organisation of European society and concludes with an examination of the role of the state in facilitating and mediating the global economy.

IR3045 Violence in Deeply Divided Societies

Bloodshed is what tends to keep divided societies in the headlines: yet the nature of this violence often remains under-examined as a political force in its own right. This module seeks to explain what drives processes of violence in deeply divided societies with particular emphasis on what happens at the grassroots and between communities. The module combines theory with in-depth consideration of four case studies from across Europe and the Middle East, taking a longer-term view of conflict in Northern Ireland, Yugoslavia, Israel/Palestine and Iraq.

IR3047 Arrested Development? The Politics of Postcolonialism

This module provides an inter-disciplinary consideration of the promises and failures of post-colonialism and development. Students will be introduced to key texts such as Said's Orientalism and Fanon's Wretched of the Earth. Once a theoretical appreciation is developed, a number of case studies will consider historical and contemporary practices of post-colonialism. Critical engagement with literature and film will also be a fundamental part of the module.

IR3048 Peacekeeping and Humanitarian Intervention

The module is designed to offer students who have undertaken some previous study in the area of International Relations an introduction to the theories and concepts of international peacekeeping and armed humanitarian intervention.Although we explore peacekeeping as a phenomenon with a long historical lineage, we concentrate on its 'refinement' as an instrument of the United Nations in the period since 1945. The approach adopted is very much a political one - concerned with the international relations and diplomacy of conflict management. This is not a training course for conflict resolution on the ground, much less a military handbook.

IR3049 International History and International Relations

The study of international relations (IR) requires that students have an understanding of at least some of the literature and examples that are commonly used by international historians (IH). This necessity is due to the obvious historical roots of many of today's pressing problems in IR. This module will take a number of key themes (initially and for example), war, peace and empire, that have been often separately explored by IR and IH scholars and show how the two disciplines can reinforce and deepen the understanding of what we broadly call the 'international'. A series of case studies will be used, initially (and for example) that of the origins of the conflict in Palestine/ Israel; that of the origins of the Balkan conflicts of the 1990s, and; that of the roots of the decline of the British Empire in the period before, during and after the First World War. Each student will be expected to undertake historical research based on a use of secondary sources and also a study based on the use of primary, even archival sources.

IR3050 State, Power, Crime

This module introduces students to the challenging and thought-provoking approaches of critical criminology and their application to key national and transnational issues in the modern global world in relation to states, power, and crime. It aims to develop a critical understanding of the nature of the state; the scale and type of crimes committed by state agents and agencies; the definitional processes involved in state's labelling acts as criminal; and the forces which explain why and how states enter into deviant or 'criminal' practices and omissions. A range of state crimes will be explored in both the domestic and international spheres as well as specific case studies pertinent to the topics explored. Module content includes crimes against humanity, crimes against nature, state-corporate crime, trafficking in human beings and asylum policy as state crime.

IR3101 Russian Politics and Foreign Policy after Communism

The module will explore the evolution of Russian politics from the collapse of Mikhail Gorbachev's reform programme to the present. There will be a particular focus on the nature of the transition process and the type of regime that has emerged, on questions of political economy, on regional politics and the Chechen problem, on relations with the republics of the former USSR and the wider world.

IR3102 Conflict in the Middle East

This module centralises conflict within the Middle-East as a broad area of inquiry and investigates the political, economic and social conditions generating conflict both within and between states in the region. The subjects covered include the emergence and meaning of the "Nation-state" in the Middle East; the ideological relationship between Islam and Pan-Arabism; the latter and State-Nationalism; state civil society relations as well as inter-ethnic and gender-related conflicts. The module also covers all aspects of the Arab-Israeli conflict.

IR3104 The International Relations of Post-communist Central and Eastern Europe

Subjects covered include: Mechanisms of control in Soviet-East European Relations; the nature of the 1989 revolutions; changes to the international system; nationalism and ethnic conflict; the Yugoslav wars; Russia?s place in Europe; regional cooperation; political-economic change in this international context; western approaches to Eastern Europe; and the new European security architecture.

IR3109 Politics and State Formation in the Middle East

This module examines the modern political history of the Middle East, concentrating on the period since 1945. It examines how the pre-modern historical heritage of the region, the impact of imperialism and the advance of modernisation have shaped contemporary politics. The module also examines contemporary political ideologies and movements, elites, the role of the military, authoritarian state structures, economic development policies, and the prospects of Islamization and democratisation. This is done through case studies mainly of Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Syria and, to a lesser extent, other countries.

IR3111 Asian Security

Establishing a security framework for Asia that will limit the risks of major war is one of the great challenges in contemporary international politics. This module will examine the evolution of security relations in Asia with special attention being given to South and East Asia and to the period since the end of the Cold War. It will consider the security cultures and policies of China, India and Japan, their relations with one another and with the United States, and the security 'architecture' that might emerge in Asia. It will also examine unresolved disputes over Taiwan and Kashmir, problems on the Korean peninsula, and the role of multilateral regimes and other international institutions.

IR3113 Gender and Generation

The incorporation of issues of gender into the prevailing international relations discourse changes the way in which international relations is thought about, and theorised. This module will examine the meaning of such change, and will also argue that, in a similar way, incorporating children into the established discourse may mean that traditional themes and constructs - such as states, sovereignty, political identity, agency, power, representation, etc. - are transformed. This module includes an examination of such issues as the use of child soldiers; women and warfare; children's economic role; and political theory as it relates to the family.

IR4099 Honours Dissertation in International Relations

The dissertation will be not more than 15,000 words. Topics must be capable of being supervised by established staff and each student will (a) submit a dissertation outline to the School, (b) be assigned a supervisor, who will be available to discuss issues related to the dissertation, (c) be required to attend four research seminars and at least six supervisory meetings of up to one hour. (Guidelines for printing and binding dissertations can be found at: http://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/printanddesign/dissertation/)

IR4401 Communication in International Relations

This module is part of ID4002 'Communication and Teaching in Arts & Humanities' in which students gain substantial experience of a working environment. This component offers the opportunity to further develop an area of interest in communicating themes of International Relations to contemporary contexts. It is available only to participants in the placement module.

IR4501 International Politics of Nuclear Weapons

Are nuclear weapons dying, or are they here to stay? This module will begin by examining the role of nuclear weapons in the Cold War, and the history of nuclear arms control. It will then consider early 1990s initiatives to end the nuclear arms race, strengthen the non-proliferation regime, and achieve disarmament. Why have these initiatives run into difficulty? Topics covered will include the lessons from; nuclear weapons in Asian politics; and shifts in US ordering strategies before and after 9/11. The module will also consider how recent nuclear developments affect, and are being affected by, happenings in other fields of military technology and arms control.

IR4507 International Relations of the Middle East

This module examines Middle East international relations, with a special concern for the following topics: 1) the special character of the Middle East state system, including the exceptional impact of the international system on the region and the special role of identity and religion in regional politics; 2) the determinants of the foreign policies of Middle East states, including the impact of variations in state structures (between monarchies, radical republics and semi-democracies) on foreign policy behaviour; and 3) analysis of regional conflict and war and of order-building experiments.

IR4509 World Order in the History of Political Thought

This module investigates conceptions and practices of world order as they have evolved in the history of political thought. It offers an interpretation of some of the leading constellations of practices and conceptions, traces their origins and overlapping histories and suggests what the implications of this complex narrative might be for contemporary world politics. It does this by using a mixture of philosophical and other texts, historical events and secondary literature and commentaries. While the focus is on the contrasting conceptions of world order available in the modern world (understood as being between 1500 and 2000), some attention will also be given to pre-modern conceptions and practices.

IR4510 Central Asia in Global Politics

Dramatically and unexpectedly, Central Asia was thrust to independence in 1991. Of all the Soviet republics, the five of Central Asia - Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan - had been the largest net recipients of Soviet aid, had benefited most economically from the Soviet Union and had thus been the most reluctant to break from the Soviet empire. Once the path of independence was followed, each of these five states faced considerable ethnic, state, economic, social and foreign policy challenges. This module aims to analyse these nation- and state-building agendas, seeking to address critically some of the now widely held assumptions about this post-Soviet area. Moreover, located in one of the world's most strategic zones, between Russia, China and a troubled Middle East, Central Asia relies on its substantial human and natural resources in the renegotiation of its geopolitical status.

IR4514 Global Public Policy

This module examines the formulation of multilateral agreements to manage global policy problems in a variety of issue-areas such as environment, new technologies, and sustainable development. It will use a variety of IR and related social theories such as functionalism, regime theory and the common-heritage of mankind, to explain problems in constructing binding international agreements. Extended case studies may include climate change, the law of the sea and the 'digital divide'.

IR4516 The International Relations of Sub-Saharan Africa

This module examines Sub-Saharan Africa's relations with and position in the global political economy. The module will aim to help understand the historical roots and contemporary impulses that help shape Africa's international relations. The module explores how Africa's nation-states and peoples interact with multilateral development banks, international institutions, aid organisations and other actors (including both "normal" external states and clandestine networks of accumulation). We will consider Africa's debt and its impact upon the continent's international relations, acknowledging that it is unsustainable but asking if total debt write-off is feasible or desirable. Why Africa's share in world trade is declining and the impact this has on the continent will also be discussed as will the role of trade restrictions and the WTO in shaping Africa's international relations. We will ask what is the logic of regional integration and can it work in Africa, whilst examining the stated goals of political unity and economic progress through the African Union. Is this just rhetoric or is there now hope for solid achievements on both political and economic fronts? We finish with an evaluation with the latest plan to put Africa on the global map: the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD).

IR4518 Ethics and the Use of Force

This module will explore the use of military force from a normative perspective. The overall thesis of the course is that norms can both enable and restrain the use of force. It will introduce students to moral, legal, and sociological methods of studying the norms that influence the use of military force. Substantive issue areas include: aerial warfare, weapons of mass destruction; humanitarian intervention; terrorism and counter terrorism; and preemptive and preventive war.

IR4520 Political Islam and International Relations

This module examines the causes, evolution and diffusion of political Islam in the core regions of the Muslim world and beyond in the modern period. It aims to describe the key features of this phenomenon, its influence on national and regional politics as well as on international relations. It describes the specificity of political Islam as a religious-based ideology and how it informs the raise of pro-Islamic movements across the Muslim world. It focuses on the relationship between Islamic movements and state, and between Islamic movements and civil society within the context of political liberalism and pluralism. The liberal and scriptural interpretations that dominate contemporary debates will be examined in relation to the local, national, regional and global context of contemporary international politics. Of particular relevance are the issues of the compatibility of politics and democracy, of political Islam and state power, of political Islam and liberal-democracy, and of the Western representation of political Islam as a security threat.

IR4522 Critical Approaches to International Security

This module will analyse the various challenges to the concept of international security since the end of the Cold War, facilitate critical thinking about the changing meaning of security as it relates to different modes of theoretical analysis, and critically analyse the re-emergence of an emphasis on security as the threat and use of force since 11 September 2001.

IR4523 The Aftermath of Wars: Liberal Dilemmas

This module will examine the aftermath of wars since about 1900 and ask what options have been open to policy makers in smoothing the transition to peace. To do so it will look at a series of such policy options in both historical depth and current reality. Most of these policy options start with an 'r': restitution, reparation, reconciliation, reconstruction, retribution etc. This module is organized around those 'r's. Each of these policy options has in itself a 'history' that is here explicitly linked to liberal thinking about war and hence to liberal views about how they should be ended.

IR4524 Theories of Justice in a Global Age

This module examines some of the main contemporary theories of justice in an era of ostensible globalisation. While traditionally the nation-state has been assumed as a relevant framework of justice, the sociopolitical changes associated with globalisation challenge the established basis for claims of justice. In this module substantive issues concerning sovereignty and international order, inequality, poverty, community, power, rights, and resistance will be considered through the writings of major thinkers spanning the theoretical spectrum, including liberalism, cosmopolitanism, critical theory, and radical democracy.

IR4525 Ethno-national Conflict in the Post-Communist Space

This module analyses the contemporary rise of ethno-national conflicts and tension and their prevention, stalemate and resolution in the Baltic, Central and East and South-East Europe, and the Caucasus. It also gives comparative attention to the roles of major states, intergovernmental organisations and non-governmental organisations in dealing with these conflicts.

IR4528 Foreign Policy of Modern China

This module will provide an introduction to the major foreign policy issues and challenges facing the People's Republic of China in the post-cold war world. The primary focus will be on Beijing's evolving opening to the international system since 1949, from Maoist to post-Maoist and post-Dengist global linkages and cooperation. The module will also examine domestic actors in China's foreign policymaking, including the CCP and the People's Liberation Army, and the effects of China's economic development and reforms. Specific regional case studies will be discussed, including changing Sino-American relations and China's relations with the Asia-Pacific region.

IR4530 Genocide

This module provides students with a conceptual and historical overview of genocide from a broad interdisciplinary perspective. Drawing upon contributions from political science, international relations, history, philosophy, sociology, psychology and literature, the module examines a range of empirical case studies along with some of the historical and philosophical debates they have sparked. Topics to be addressed include definitions of genocide; the evolving international law of genocide; themes of memory, responsibility and denial; and mechanisms of justice and reconciliation.

IR4531 The Return of Great Power Politics

The aim of this inter-disciplinary module is to introduce students to conceptual frameworks for thinking about recent trends indicating the probable return of Great Power politics in the 21st century. It challenges conventional wisdom and assumptions that the international system and security is now dominated by globalization and the war on terrorism. Various theoretical debates on the re-emergence of great power competition are examined such as 'offensive neo-realism', polarity theory and the challenges pose by globalization theories and their advocates. Issues assessed include the continued relevance of 'old' security concepts characterizing great power politics, like the balance of power, geo-political competition, arms races, and security dilemmas.

IR4532 The Cultural Politics of Human Rights

There are more people than ever before who believe strongly in the necessity of the inclusion of human rights considerations when thinking about actions at every level of societal interaction; personal, local, national and international. The use of the concept is, however, frequently misused and the outcome of rights campaigns is often far from the original intention. In exploring these complex issues the module is divided into two parts. In PART I the long-standing and polarizing debate between liberal and Marxian theories regarding the role of the concept of human rights in society will be examined. Many theorists are now attempting to go beyond this divide to think through the potential for the concept in the process of social transformation. The social constructionist and neo-Gramscian approaches to the concweptualisation of human rights will be introduced. Drawing on this theoretical discussion a series of contemporary issues will be explored in PART II and the focus will be on suitability of the concept in any programme of social transformation by considering the role - nationally and internationally - of the legal system, economic relations, government and non-government organizations.

IR4533 The Arab-Israeli Conflict

This module is an essential primer for all students wishing to explore the complexities of the Arab-Israeli conflict from its origins to its recent evolution in the 'post' colonial era. Students will gain significant knowledge about the local, regional and international dimensions of the conflict with an emphasis on historical and legal analyses. A critical appreciation of intellectual debates will assist students in navigating their way through the themes of state formation, secular and religious ideologies, identity politics, human rights discourses and the role of the media in the construction of the conflict. Students should end the semester with a sound knowledge-base about the region's most enduring and intractable conflict.

IR4534 Terrorist Finance

This module is an overview on the methods used to finance terrorism and the approaches taken by states and international organisations to prevent it. Students will gain knowledge about the realities of terrorist financing in order to understand the nature of the activity and its role in the political economy of terrorism. It introduces the contemporary discourse on terrorist finance, its problems, and its impact on governments, the financial industry, charities and private citizens. Students will develop an understanding for the economic contexts of terrorist actors and the processes by which knowledge of terrorist finance is created and exploited.

IR4535 Theories of Friendship, Solidarity and Peace

In political theory the concept of peace may be characterised as an umbrella of varying size. At its smallest, the umbrella only captures the bare bones of the concept: peace means absence of war and violence. As it grows in diameter, the umbrella of peace starts to include other factors: first, it captures some agreement on rules regulating conflict and disagreement, then agreement on some basic values, then the bond of solidarity, of fraternity and friendship. This module introduces students to prominent theories of peace in the western tradition and provides them with a foundation for understanding the meaning and significance of peace in different historical circumstances.

IR4536 Warmongers and Peacemakers: Religious Actors and Conflict

This comparative module introduces students to the complex relationship between religion and violence by addressing the conflict and peacemaking capacities of religion and religious actors. Set in the context of theoretical approaches towards religion, politics and conflict; case studies will be examined from a wide range of geographical areas, faiths and conflict types. Conflicts with a religious element covered include those relating to political supremacy, occupation and resistance, nationalism, separation and intercommunal violence. The module also examines religious institutions and authoritarianism as well as the role of transnational religious actors regarding conflict and peace.

IR4538 Identities, Belonging and Others

The module explores the processes of collective identity formation and is role in conflict; students will analyse the processes by which individuals form group attachments and come to be recognised as belonging to a particular community. Yet these processes of demarcation also are performances of exclusion, establishing boundaries of those to be trusted and those who may be subject to violent repudiation. The module will explore conceptions of nationalism and ethnicity and how the constructions of each can lead to communal violence. Similarly students will examine modes of reproduction and transmission of class and gender identities, and how all of these fluid identities shift and realign while maintaining distinctions, designating who belongs and who is other.

IR4539 International Law and International Legal Theory

This module aims to provide students with a solid grounding in the theory and practice of international law. An understanding of key legal concepts and doctrines will be gained by a general overview of international legal institutions and some of the main bodies of international law, including human rights law, international dispute resolution, international humanitarian law and international criminal law. Students will be expected to engage with international legal history, critical international legal theory and international relations approaches to the study of law at the international level.

IR4540 The Changing Character of War

The aim of this module is to discuss change and continuity in the theory and practice of war. The module is organised along historical instances and phases of war over the past two decades. Starting with the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, the module will consider major events in the history of war such as the two world wars and the Cold War. It discusses to what extent terrorism and humanitarian intervention present new forms of war. Each session will analyse change and continuity regarding four thematic areas: strategic thought and practice, technology, socio-political conditions and cultural representations of war. The module is intended to give students a nuanced overview of major developments in the theory and practice of war and hence to enable them to discuss contemporary security issues from a historically well-informed perspective.

IR4541 Dealing in Darkness: An Anatomy of Realism in International Relations

One of the central traditions of thought in international relations is the Realist Tradition. Yet while often cited, Realism is often also caricatured or simply misunderstood on a large scale. Recently work in both international theory and intellectual history has uncovered the breadth and the depth of the Realist tradition as well as the range of views and opinions about the political world available within it. This module seeks to examine the tradition in the light of this new work, concentrating on the major thinkers of the tradition in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries.

IR4542 Gender and Terrorism

This module will familiarise students with how gender is a construction that privileges certain actors over and against others. Bluntly, gender, similarly to race and class, is a tool for the construction and maintenance of power. Therefore, this module aims to answer, 'how does Terrorism Studies scholarship privilege certain actors?' Beginning with the assumed primacy of the state, the students will deconstruct how Terrorism Studies' reliance upon the discourse of legitimacy and rationality denies agency to certain groups and actors. Students will then evaluate how such discourse impacts the scholarship and information regarding women who are involved in political violence.

IR4543 Activism and Resistance

This module aims to examine the many forms of activism and resistance that take place in the international system, with an emphasis upon those whose claims for agency may most often go unheard, whether for reasons of age, cause, ethnicity, gender, race, or sexuality. This module will provide both a theoretical grounding in the literatures of activism and resistance, and an empirical analysis of the acts that have taken place in their name using the so-called 'weapons of the weak'. From such acts, often everyday in character, this module will examine the significance of activism and resistance in global terms.

IR4544 War and Peace in the Caucasus

The Caucasus region has suffered some of the worst wars, terrorist attacks and violent state-led counter-insurgencies in recent history. This module examines the contending accounts of war, terrorism and instability, giving attention to such conflicts as Chechnya, Nagorno-Karabakh and those in Georgia, including the conventional war of 2008. The interests and efforts of regional and international actors in trying to secure the region will also be examined, as will thematic issues such as democratisation and human rights promotion.

IR4545 Indian Foreign Policy

This module is designed to provide an analysis of the emergence of India within the international system. Focusing upon the factors integral to such a phenomenon (from both theoretical and historical perspectives), students will build up a comprehensive and future significance. After an historical overview, the module will evaluate key factors concerning how India conducts and formulates its foreign policy (from strategic and economic factors, to its regional and multilateral interactions). This analysis will then lead to a comprehensive evaluation of India's future challenges as an emergent Asian and global power in the twenty-first century.